Tile flooring



N. MARINO TILE FLOORING March 6, 1945.

Filed Aug. 17, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Wit;

March 6, 1945. N. MARINO 2,371,058

TILE FLOORING Filed Aug. 17, 1942 2 SheetsSheet 2 Patented Mar. 6, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TILE FLOORING Nick Marlno, Washington, D. 0. Application August 17, 1942, Serial No. 455,112

1 Claim.

This invention relates to building construction and more particularly to tile floors and ceilings for buildings.

An important object of the invention is to provide a process for constructing tile flooring which is composed almost entirely of tiles and cement, and which can be quickly and cheaply laid without requiring highly skilled labor.

More particularly the process of my invention contemplates stringing a series of hollow building tiles together by means of wires or rods, laying the rows or strings of tiles side-by-side and extending between the supporting walls or trusses of a building, and then filling in the spaces provided between adjacent rows of tiles to laterally bond the tiles together and consolidate the tiles into a unitary flooring.

Another object of the invention is to provide a building tile of special construction which is particularly adapted for carrying out the above process, the tile being light in weight and having its sides so fashioned as to provide recesses for receiving the wires or rods for stringing the tiles together.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a floorin for buildings made according to the above process.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, reference being had to the annexed drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a building tile;

Figure 2 shows in perspective the manner in which the individual tiles are strung together to form a unitary row of tiles;

Figure 3 is a view indicating how the rows of tiles are stacked to await hardening of the cement holding the wires or rods in place;

Figure 4 is a transverse cross-sectional view showing two adjacent rows of tiles cemented together in the position they assume when the fioor is laid; and

Figure 5 is a broken-away perspective view of a building showing a portion of the laid flooring.

In Fig. 1 of the drawings is shown a ceramic building tile T comprising flat and parallel ceiling and tread faces I and la, respectively, and side faces 2. Transverse and vertical strengthening webs 3 extend between these faces so as to provide a light hollow building tile. The side faces 2 are slightly tapered inwardly from the ceiling face toward the tread face, and each side is provided with a pair of parallel recesses 4 extending the full length of the tile. The recesses are of wedge-shaped cross-section with one side of the wedge disposed parallel to the ceiling and tread faces of the tile and the other side of the wedge tapering inwardly in the same direction as the sides of the tile but at a steeper angle. I prefer to make these tiles about 8 inches wide across its ceiling face, 7 inches wide across its tread face, 4 inches high and 12 inches long, although the size of the tile and its relative proportions may be varied to best suit the conditions of use.

In preparing to lay a flooring, a series of the tiles are placed end-to-end in a straight row, as indicated in Fig. 2, and wires 5, 5a are laterally introduced into the corners of the wedge-shaped recesses 4 with the ends of the wires left projecting beyond opposite ends of a row of tiles. These wires-and by the term wires as used throughout the present specification and claim is also meant rodsmay be about %-inch in diameter. The pair of lower wires 5a may be slightly larger than the pair of upper wires 5. After the wires have been inserted, the remaining space of the recesses 4 is filled in with a plastic cement, as indicated at 6 in Fig. 2, to securely bond the wires to the tiles. As the tiles are strung together into rows, they are stacked one upon the other as indicated at S in Fig. 3 and left exposed to the atmosphere until the cement hardens and the tiles constituting the rows become firmly bound together. The number of tiles comprising a row will vary according to the distances required to be spanned, or as may be determined by other factors. Likewise the size of the wires 5 will depend upon the load to be carried by the floor.

After the walls W of the building have been erected to the level where the flooring is to be laid, the rows of tiles are removed from the stack S, inverted, and laid side-by-side, as indicated in Fig. 4 with their ends resting upon the wall. In the inverted position of the tiles the ceiling faces of adjacent rows of tiles will abut forming with the rest of the tiles a continuous ceiling for the room below, while the tread faces of the tiles are separated by narrow V-shaped slots 1, resulting from the tapering sides of the tiles, into which slots cement 8 is filled until flush with the tread faces, as indicated in Fig. 4. The ends of the wires which project beyond the rows of tiles about five inches more or less may be twisted together with the wires of adjacent rows.

Thereafter the erection of the walls W is continued, clearance spaces 9 being left between the sides and ends of the flooring which is filled in with cement so as to more securely anchor the flooring to the walls. Upon drying of the cement between the rows of tile and filling the clearance spaces 9, the tiles are rigidly united to form a unitary flooring which is capable of supporting the weight which the floors of homes, offices, stores, industrial buildings, etc. are ordinarily called upon to sustain, and without requiring any subjacent support, such as is usually furnished by joists and pillars, although such support may be provided if desired to further rigidify the building structure.

The flooring produced according to the foregoing description is quickly, cheaply and easily erected, presents an attractive appearance and is sufliciently strong and solid to answer for all ordinary purposes. If desired the ceiling and tread faces of the flooring may be coated over with a finishing or sound-proofing material, although this will not be necessary other than to meet special conditions. The tile T may be composed of any suitable material, such as baked clay, terra-cotta, etc. Instead of being provided with tapered sides, the tiles may be cut away in any other manner so as to provide a closed pocket between two adjacent rows of tiles for receiving cement. While I have described a tile flooring, it is to be understood that essentially the same method may be employed in constructing roofing, roadways, etc. The recesses 4 need not necessarily be wedge-shaped, although such shape is preferable.

Manifestly it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that my process may be carried out in other ways than that described above and the flooring and building tile of my invention may assume other forms than that set forth in the foregoing description without departing from the spirit of my invention as defined by the following claim.

Iclaim:

A hollow building tile of the type adapted to be strung on wires and composed of ceramic material, said tile having flat parallel tread and ceiling faces and oppositely inclined generally flat side faces tapering from the ceiling face inwardly toward the tread face of the tile, each of said side faces being provided with a plurality of wedge-shaped recesses extending lengthwise of the tile, the top wall of each recess being disposed substantially parallel to the tread and ceiling faces and the other side wall of the recess tapering in the same direction as the corresponding side face but at a steeper inclination so as to intersect said side face, the top walls of one pair of said recesses on opposite sides of the tile being located approximately midway of the thickness of the tile and said recesses being of a size sufficient to laterally receive a supporting wire therein, webs extending perpendicular and parallel to the tread face for interiorly strengthening the tile, the tread face and one of said webs joining the top walls of corresponding recesses located upon opposite sides of the tile.

NICK MARINO. 

